Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 40 / Thursday, February 28, 2008 / Notices 10741 

Number of Responses per 

Respondent: 2.53. 

Total Number of Annual Responses: 

1,404,718. 

Estimated Time per Response: 0.09. 

Estimated Total Annual Burden: 

135,393. 

Dated: February 22, 2008. 

Roberto Salazar, 

Administrator, Food and Nutrition Service. 

[FR Doc. E8–3750 Filed 2–27–08; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–30–P 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Forest Service 

Caribou-Targhee National Forest, 

Idaho; Big Bend Ridge Vegetation 

Management Project and Timber Sale 

Supplemental Environmental Impact 

Statement and Proposed Targhee 

Forest Plan Amendment 

AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA. 

ACTION: Cancellation of notice of intent 

to prepare a supplemental 

environmental impact statement that 

was published on May 30, 2007, on page 

29948 of the Federal Register. 

SUMMARY: After review of the proposal 

and public comments on the project the 

Caribou-Targhee National Forest has 

decided not to prepare a Supplemental 

Environmental Impact Statement for the 

Big Bend Ridge Vegetation Management 

Project and Timber Sale and the 

associated Targhee Forest Plan 

amendment at this time. The Forest will 

propose to amend the Targhee Revised 

Forest Plan under a separate proposal in 

the near future. 

DATES: Effective cancellation of this 

project upon the date of publication of 

this notice in the Federal Register. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Robbin Redman at the Caribou-Targhee 

National Forest at 1405 Hollipark Drive, 

Idaho Falls, ID 83401 or via telephone 

at (208) 557–5821. 

Dated: February 20, 2008. 

Larry Timchak, 

Forest Supervisor. 

[FR Doc. 08–862 Filed 2–27–08; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–11–M 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Forest Service 

Sierra National Forest; California; 

Kings River Project 

AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA. 

ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare a 

supplement to the Kings River 

Environmental Impact Statement. 

SUMMARY: The Forest Service will 

prepare a supplement to the 2006 Kings 

River Project Final Environmental 

Impact Statement (FEIS). The 

supplement will be focused on new 

information and clarification, 

particularly related to Pacific fisher; a 

new multi-forest Land Management 

Plan Amendment regarding 

management indicator species; 

applicable suggestions in a new paper 

titled An Ecosystem Management 

Strategy for Southern Sierra MixedConifer Forests by North, M., P. Stine, 

K. O’Hara, W. Zielinski and S. Stephens; 

and collaboration that may result in a 

change in the timing, description, and 

location of activities within the project 

area. 

DATES: Scoping is not required for 

supplements to environmental impact 

statements (40 CFR 1502.9(c)4(4)). The 

draft supplement to the FEIS is expected 

to be issued in April 2008 and the final 

supplement to the FEIS is expected in 

July 2008. Comments on the draft 

supplement to the FEIS must be 

received by 45 days after publication. 

ADDRESSES: Send written comments to 

Ray Porter, District Ranger, High Sierra 

Ranger District, PO Box 559, Prather, CA 

93651, Attn: Kings River Project 

Supplement. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ross 

Peckinpah, Kings River Project 

Coordinator, at the High Sierra Ranger 

District. Telephone number is (559) 

855–5355 x3350. Information regarding 

the Kings River Project can be found on 

the Sierra National Forest Web site 

located at: http://www.fs.fed.us/sierra/ 

projects/. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

The Kings River planning area 

encompasses approximately 131,500 

acres of public lands in two watersheds 

of the Kings River drainage. The 

northern edge of the project is located 

about two miles southeast of Shaver 

Lake, CA. 

One hundred years of fire suppression 

in the Sierra Nevada has resulted in 

forests full of dead wood and thickly 

clustered trees. This situation, plus 

continued urbanization of lands 

adjacent to national forest lands, has put 

the forests and homes at risk of 

catastrophic fire. A FEIS was released in 

October of 2006 addressing the situation 

in the Kings River Project area that 

applied an uneven aged silvicultural 

system and prescribed fire upon eight 

units totaling 13,700 acres. On 

December 20, 2006 the Record of 

Decision (ROD) for the Kings River 

Project was signed. The decision was 

appealed and upheld by the Regional 

Forester. In May of 2007 a lawsuit was 

filed against the Forest Service that 

alleged the analysis conducted for the 

Kings River Project FEIS and ROD was 

inadequate. Since that time additional 

information has developed to help 

analyze effects of restoration projects on 

sensitive wildlife species like Pacific 

fisher. A new multi-forest Land 

Management Plan Amendment has also 

been issued regarding management 

indicator species. A new paper 

suggesting An Ecosystem Management 

Strategy for Southern Sierra MixedConifer Forests by North, M., P. Stine, 

K. O’Hara, W. Zielinski and S. Stephens 

is about to be peer reviewed and 

published. Collaborative efforts with 

those who opposed this project and/or 

new information could change the 

timing, description, and location of 

activities within the project area that 

would require supplementing the FEIS 

and publishing a new ROD. As a result 

of this, the December 20, 2006 ROD was 

withdrawn. 

Purpose and Need for Action 

This supplement is focused on new 

information and clarification, 

particularly related to Pacific fisher; a 

new multi-forest Land Management 

Plan Amendment regarding 

management indicator species; 

applicable suggestions in a new paper 

titled An Ecosystem Management 

Strategy for Southern Sierra MixedConifer Forests by North, M., P. Stine, 

K. O’Hara, W. Zielinski and S. Stephens; 

and ongoing collaboration so the 

purpose and need for action remain the 

same as was described in the 2007 Kings 

River Project FEIS. ‘‘The underlying 

need for the proposed action is to 

restore historical pre-1850 forest 

conditions across a large landscape’’

(Kings River Project FEIS pg. 1–4). 

Proposed Action 

The proposed action and all 

alternatives are expected to remain the 

same as was described in the 2007 Kings 

River Project FEIS. Three alternatives 

were analyzed in the FEIS to address the 

Purpose and Need: (1) The Proposed 

Action—including commercial tree 

harvest & thinning, underburning, 

reforestation, plantation maintenance, 

fuels treatments, watershed restoration 

projects, and herbicide treatments to 

plantations and noxious weeds, (2) No 

Action and (3) Reduction in Harvest 

Tree Size—limiting the vegetation 

treatments to trees 30′′ diameter and 


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